CD Designs Blog

Complete Driveway Designs now installs resin bonded driveways. As promised in January, here is a description of our new product, and what it can offer to our customers.

The product we use is manufactured by Adbruf, and is a flexible two-part solvent-free polyurethane hybrid resin. In non-techno babble, this is the actual glue that holds the materials together. It can either be applied first with an aggregate laid on top (resin bonded), or mixed with an aggregate before application (resin bound). The aggregates themselves can be almost anything, ranging from granite, wood, quartz tarmac, rubber and of course concrete, and can be any colour, shape or size.

Once finished it gives the appearance of loose aggregate, but is actually very strong and suitable for vehicles to be parked on. It also creates a surface with a good deal of friction, great for winter weather or areas with ramps.

One of the main advantages of this type of surface is that it is fully permeable, meaning it lets water through and therefore there is no need for extra drainage to be installed. Non-permeable surfaces like tarmac or concrete usually require drainage in order to comply with government water regulations.

If you would like a free, no-obligation quotation for a resin bound or resin bonded driveway or patio, or would like any information about the process, then please get in touch on 01706 827180 or leave a message here.

We hope you had a good Christmas and New Year. Welcome to Complete Driveway Designs’ 11th year. After celebrating a successful 10th anniversary last year, our aim is to make 2014 even better for ourselves and our customers.

Over the next few weeks we will be telling you about the latest product that we are going to be specialising in – resin bonded stone. It can be used for driveways, patios and a host of other surfaces, and gives a great looking smooth finish that is strong enough for heavy vehicles, and highly weather resistant.

Aerial shot of the installation in progress

We have numerous projects lined up over the next few months, and we are taking orders for our late spring/early summer installations, so if you would like a free quote for any driveway, patio, fencing, walling or any other work then please call us on 01706 827180 or click here and leave us a message.

This project was installed in September of this year. Originally a small space, this back yard was transformed into a more open and usable space using pattern imprinted concrete.

Before the concrete was installed, a retaining wall was removed from the area and four steps were installed for access. The customer had previously had trouble with water seeping into his basement, so provisions were made for any water to run away from the house and into an aco channel which sat in front of the lowest step. An extra gully was also fitted to alleviate excess water from the roof of the outhouse.

The pattern used for this yard is London Cobble, and the colour is Arizona Tan. As you can see from the above picture, even a relatively small space can be transformed into an attractive and functional part of the home.

We are always looking for more environmentally friendly ways to work, and a recent dissertation by Johanna Tikkanen of the Aalto University School of Engineering near Helsinki in Finland, could lead to big developments in the future.

The idea of the paper was to study how different mineral powders could be used as replacements for the cement, the creation of which is one of the main contributors to the amount of CO2 emitted during the manufacturing process. Replacing or simply reducing the amount of cement in the concrete will lower the amount of CO2 used significantly, and will also reduce the cost of manufacturing. Mineral powders can also be used to reduce the water requirements of concrete, further adding to the economic and environmental benefits.

Obviously, the properties of the cement will have to remain roughly the same, so that the concrete can be used in the same processes as before, but if it can be perfected, then concrete production will be greener than ever before.